Aero Commander 100-180 N4064X

Summary

On 18 March 2023 at about 15:00 local time, a Aero Commander 100-180 registered N4064X was involved in an accident near Gordonville, Texas, United States. 2 people were on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

18 March 2023 at 15:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Gordonville, Texas, United States

Nearest airport

Cedar Mills (3T0)

Coordinates

33.8393, -96.8101

Aircraft

Aero Commander 100-180

Registration

N4064X

Category

Airplane

Year built

1970

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Iowa Park → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR23LA130

1 person had minor injuries.

A fatigue fracture of the nose landing gear scissor link, which resulted in a separation of the nose landing gear piston assembly.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was flying the last airplane to land in a group of six airplanes. During the landing, the main landing gear touched down on the grass runway and the airplane bounced once. When the airplane touched down again, the nose landing gear collapsed, the propeller blades contacted the grass, and the airplane nosed over. Postaccident examination of the nose landing gear scissor link showed that the fracture face had failed from fatigue, which resulted in a separation of the nose landing gear piston assembly. Based on witness reports, ground scars, and damage to the nosewheel fairing, it’s likely the scissor link failed either during the initial touchdown or when the nose wheel touched down after the bounced landing. The strut remained attached to the airplane at the engine mount. The aircraft logbooks showed that a bushing on the scissor link had been replaced several months before the accident. There was insufficient evidence to determine the source of the fatigue crack and whether a mechanic would have been able to identify the fatigue during a visual inspection.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.